One Look
by ZehHyperactiveAuthor
Summary: Years of practices cruelty had been demolished and would never be the same again. And, suddenly, her whole life had been turned upside-down. From one look. She hated that hedgehog.
1. Prisoner

_Face lost in a crowd._

_Feet wandering empty streets._

_Voice crying out loud._

_Heart aching with every beat._

_Soul battered and bruised._

_Pride wounded and left for dead._

_Ears deaf to good news._

_Eyes tear-drenched and sleepless red._

Someone Searching -

Ginny Owens

Her footsteps echoed down the long, dark corridor, ricocheting off the dull grey concrete walls to reach her unusually inattentive ears. What little light there was highlighted her ebony pelt and matching trench coat. Her stride was stiff and purposeful and her fists were clenched so tightly, the freshly-sharpened claws pierced the grimy, tattered fabric of her blood-stained, fingerless black gloves. Her face was stuck in an apparently permanent scowl. Her green eyes were hard, fierce chips of jade, devoid of all emotion save anger.

She was outraged. This wasn't a very surprising statement considering her life at present. There were many places to direct her wrath: the harsh, ruthless atmosphere, her slave-like lifestyle, the Commander and his assignments, the agony so constant, it was almost routine, the dog-eat-dog world she lived in…But no. Her anger was currently directed toward none of those. Instead, not for the first time, she was furious with _herself_.

Scowling, she turned another corner, strait into the dungeon. Here, the occasional guard or interrogator passed her rigid form. Neither glanced in the other's direction, yet she knew they were watching her, as she was them. It was how they were trained.

Here and there, she would come across a barred cell containing any unfortunate passerby that dared trespass their land. The newest would cower in terror as she passed, though those who had been there long enough she found staring lifelessly at nothing at all, all hope and will having long since fled. These had been recently broken and would soon be trained as guards, assassins, or hard-labor slaves. For those who entered Black Viper territory never returned.

Soon, she reached the end of the corridor, and promptly turned to face the door on her left. its sole guard, a wolf with unruly fur and a long, wicked scar, immediately bared his sharp, pointed teeth and growled fiercely, his gloved hand reaching for his dagger. He instantly found himself face-to-face with a double-edged saber. His yellow eyes widened slightly, surprised that a mere hedgehog could have so quick a draw.

"Don't even think about it," she hissed. "I was sent for the troublesome prisoner." The wolf nodded and turned to remove the metal plank currently bolting the iron door, not at all intimidated by the blade that had hovered inches from his muzzle. By now he was well used to these types of situations. He opened the door and stepped aside, allowing the fuming hedgehog to pass through before closing it behind him.

Said hedgehog paused momentarily, allowing her eyes to adjust to the near pitch darkness, before continuing down the steep, stone stairs. Torches lit the hallway below, though they were so spaced out that in some areas, it was impossible to see. She ignored the empty cells lining one side of the wall; her destination was the barred room at the very end, where the sole prisoner was kept. Once there, she removed a torch from its spot against the wall and stepped inside, using it to light the twin torches bordering the doorframe as she did so.

Outlined against the flickering glow of the fire was a hedgehog. He was in a worse state than the others were. His once-azure pelt and unruly quills were now so filthy and caked with mud that their original color was nearly unrecognizable. Blood trickled from the cuffs on his wrists and ankles. His wrists had been chained to the ceiling, forcing him to stand up and making it easier for her to flog him for attempting to escape. Again.

He squinted in the sudden light, blinking rapidly. When his eyes fell upon her he smiled warmly, emerald eyes twinkling. "Hello," he greeted her pleasantly. She gave him a glare fierce enough to scare Goliath. If he noticed it, he didn't give any indication. Once again, she found herself furious. This was all his fault. She bared her teeth and let out a low, menacing growl. "Well, nice to see you too," he joked. She sneered.

"Did you really think you could escape?" she taunted, trying vainly to rid him of his aggravating smile. It was so much easier when they cowered. She was used to that.

Her question was rhetorical and he knew it, but answered nonetheless. "No. I was just bored. Wouldn't you be?" There he went again, asking her a question as though her opinion really mattered.

As usual, she chose not to answer, instead speaking of his previous statement. "You're honestly willing to sacrifice your own comfort for the sake of amusement?" She scoffed. "You are more ludicrous than I first anticipated."

The prisoner just smirked. "That's me. No one came seem to figure me out. My reasoning'll always be a mystery." He seemed proud of it too. She scowled again.

He had come to Black Viper three months ago as a trespasser, and since then had been nothing but trouble. Along with attempting to escape literally every week, he'd also managed to infuriate the head Commander, a lynx who was known only as Darkclaw. She knew he was really in for it this time. Not that she cared, or course.

She growled and shook her head. "You _do_ realize I'm here to punish you?" She inquired. He was so cheerful; the thought must have escaped him somehow. But he was still smiling, albeit sadly, as he replied.

"Yes." His voice had softened considerably, and the way he said this, it was almost as though he pitied her. She hated being pitied. She hadn't been pitied for thirteen years.

She tried to ignore his calm, understanding look as she strode briskly over to where her favorite leather whip hung amidst other devices. It was decorated with jagged bits of sharp glass, wire, and metal, wove expertly into the thin, fire-hardened material. She could feel his gaze drilling a hole through her back as she inspected it. Without warning, she whirled around, whip raised over her head. It came crashing down into a nearby table.

The hedgehog had clenched his eyes and grit his teeth when she moved, bracing himself for impact. She waited until he reopened them, eyes widening in surprise as he located the end of the whip, before pulling it slowly back toward her. The shrapnel had lodged deep into the wood, so that she ended up pulling the table a couple of feet. She saw him give a satisfying flinch out of the corner of her eye, no doubt imagining the whip tearing into his own disheveled fur. Feeling smug, she calmly took a bottle of liquid and carefully rubbed it onto the whip with a torn cloth. The liquid was designed the make the wounds heal slower.

Now, this was usually the point where the prisoners would start begging. Bargaining. Anything to prolong their torture. The hedgehog didn't make a sound. She turned to him, whip in hand, wicked smirk in place, trying to make herself look as cruel as possible. She froze.

His eyes were not downcast or terrified, though they held a reasonable amount of fear. He met her gaze evenly, burning emerald eyes calmly peeling back the many carefully-constructed layers of her mask until he found the cowering, innocent seven-year-old girl that she had buried all those years ago. Then, he silently pleaded. The seven-year-old didn't stand a chance.

She trembled as guilt suddenly tore at her, attempting to eat her alive. He'd just stabbed a hole into a dam, and suddenly, it burst forth, flooding long-forgotten emotions into her system. New needs demanded her attention: the need for warmth, for shelter, for comfort, for companionship.

Pain flooded through her, threatening to overwhelm her. So, her body shut down its source, beating the little girl back into submission. And, suddenly, she could breathe again.

The world came spinning back into focus. She found herself looking at the prisoner's soft, kind expression.

He knew.

Her eyes narrowed dangerously low and she bared her teeth, striding toward him, whip in hand as though to strike him. Instead, she buried her hand in his ruffled quills, grabbing a fist-full and jerking him painfully upward until their faces were but inches apart. An attempt at intimidation.

"One word," she snarled, "One word about this to _anyone_ and you'll wish you'd never been born." All he had to do was smile. A single triumphant smirk and she'd be flogging him mercilessly. But he simply nodded calmly, holding her gaze.

And then, ever so quietly, he spoke. "What's your name?" Her name. She hadn't been asked that in a very long time. Rank, maybe. Name, never. Hesitation flash across her features, but he was in no hurry. Silence stretched to minutes. War waged freely in her mind, but her mask, after being shattered so devastatingly, was not yet fully reassembled, and the little girl peered through the cracks of her prison…

"Tyla." Her own voice startled her. She'd intended to give her codename, if any, but her real name slipped out, feeling foreign and pleasant on her tongue.

He smiled. "Sonic," he murmured. "Thank you, Tyla."

She released him, uncertain glare frozen on her features, before turning to flee down the hall. Years of practiced cruelty had abruptly been demolished, and would never truly be the same again. And, suddenly, her whole life had been turned upside down. From one look. She hated that hedgehog.

Me: Woooohoooo! So depressing! Could be continued…I have an awesome idea(in which Sonic eventually escapes)…I dunno. I still need to work on my other stories. *insert audience cheering* Alright, alright! I promise to update soon-

Roxy: Notice she didn't give a specific date.

Me: Roxy?

Roxy: Yeah?

Me: Shut up.

Roxy: Make me.

Me: *sigh* Do we have to go through this again?

Roxy: (turns to audience) Later! (leaves)

Me: Wait…what? Hey! *sigh* Anyway, I'll **_UPDATE_** agian with the next **_FIVE_** reviews! So review! ...please?


	2. No, anyone but him

Me: I. Am. _**ALIVE!**_ And I _really_ wasn't planning on updating this story _at all_, but I reread what a certain reviewer wrote and decided that a) if the whole possible mary-sue thing (which I plan on changing) was the only thing he/she could find wrong with it, then it was definitely worth a shot, and b) that was one of the best reviews I have received. Ever. So, NoOneSpecial, I suggest you change your name, cause this ones for you! THANKYOUSOMUCH! 8D Oh, and I don't one Sonic or Tails. Or the Tornado. I do, however, own the scientific doohickey. (See below…)

"_Hey, Tails! Whatcha working on?" I asked, skidding to a halt by his side and cocking my head with interest. There was a thump, followed by a muffled "Ow" before the aforementioned fox finally slid out from underneath…something. Seeing it was me, the little mechanic brightened, standing up while rubbing his head._

"_Sonic!" He replied. "Great to see you!" Then he motioned to the gizmo behind him. "This is a machine I designed to use the (whatchamacallit) law of (something complicated) to balance the (sounds Greek) energy of the (something or other) so that the (more Greek…) and the (other whatchamacallit) will equalize without destroying the (scientific doohickey)." He looked proud of it too._

_I placed my chin on my hand, leaning lazily on one of his work tables. "I lost you at 'whatchamacallit'." Tails gave me a strange look and I sighed. "So what's it do?"_

"_Well-"_

"_In __**English**__." _

_He paused for a moment, Sonic-proofing his statement, before replying. "It, uh…uses water to create biochemi-uh, __**energy**__. You know, like electricity?" I smiled, pride washing over me. My little bro was a flippin' genius. I told him as much and he flushed in embarrassment. _

"_Aw, come on…__**Anyone**__ could've figured that out," Tails protested halfheartedly, slouching against his gizmo. I raised an eyebrow at him and he rethought his statement. "Any __**scientist**__," he corrected._

_I chucked and reached over to ruffle his fluffy head, causing him swat my hand away with a playful glare. "Naw…" I said. "There isn't a scientist around smarter that you. Hey now, don't give me that look. __**You**__ know its true," I stated, poking him in the chest for emphases. He still looked doubtful, but at least he didn't argue. "Say, how about we test out those new modifications you made to the Tornado?" I suggested, changing the subject._

_His ears perked up at this, a smile once again claiming his features. "Sure! Hey, you won't __**believe**__ what I put in the weapons system!" The little fox immediately scampered off toward his garage-type-thing, already getting technical as he described it. Shaking my head with a smile, I followed close behind._

My eyes flew open as pain shot up my shoulder. It took me a moment to remember where I was, the memory still fresh in my mind, but the clinking of chains brought me crashing back into reality. I closed my eyes, momentarily adorning a pained expression. A dream. Of course.

I sighed shakily, before once again attempting to stand and take some of the pressure off my wrists. It was a loosing battle and I had to grit my teeth as my shoeless feet pushed against the concrete. Standing had become a constant battle nowadays, and I wasn't entirely sure how long it would be before I couldn't move at all and would be forced to just hang limply from the chains. I tried not to think about it.

Attempting to regain the feeling in my legs, I squinted up at the gashes on my wrists, trying to check for infection in the almost nonexistent light. This proved useless however; the torches Tyla had lit had long since gone out and I could only see my hands if I moved them.

Tyla. I kinda missed her. She hasn't been down here for, what? Two weeks? A month? I couldn't tell. Time and I had never been good friends, and down here, it was practically fictional. I _did_ know that it had been too long. And I. Was. **Bored**_. _

I vaguely considered another escape attempt, but decided against it. If I could hardly _stand_, then I was in no shape to fight. I wanted to at _least_ get out of the cellar, to see the daylight, before I was captured and beaten. Escape was pretty much out of the question. A sudden stab of pain echoed through my chest as I thought of Tails. I would probably never see him again…

I growled, shaking my head and scolding myself for thinking like that. It wasn't impossible 'till I was in the ground. Besides, I'd been through worse…Still. I was _really_ bored. I closed my eyes, not that it really made any difference, skimming through the different options for entertainment. When I finally fell on one, my mouth twisted into a wicked grin.

This should be fun.

XXxxXXxxXXxxXX

Tyla scowled as she briskly strode down the dungeon hallway. It was just an order. She was _fine _with following orders. In fact, she should be _honored _with this particular order. So why did this bother her so much? She snarled at the familiar stab of pain. She knew the answer. She'd been trying to convince herself otherwise for the past two _weeks_,but she knew. She just wished it _wasn't_ the answer. That hedgehog was going to make things a lot harder.

Quickly, she turned a corner, coming face-to-face with a familiar wolf who was already drawing his dagger. She didn't even bother with her saber, her eyes narrowing dangerously low.

"Move." She commanded. What she really meant was '_You know who I am, so unlock the dang door before I decapitate you._' The wolf was lucky he was so good at reading faces. Not a minute later, she was descending the dark stone steps. When she reached his cell, she pause momentarily, collecting herself. '_Let's get this over with._' Quickly, she snatched a torch off the wall and entered the cell.

It was empty. Tyla stared with mild surprise at the now-open shackles dangling uselessly from the ceiling and cuffs sprawled out across the floor. '_Again?_' she wondered, bemused. '_Well, at least he'll have one last…_' She shook her head and whirled around to head back to the stairway. However, halfway down the hallway, she froze.

There was a flickering light coming from one of the cells. '_What…?_' Narrowing jade eyes, she strode inside to investigate. And there he was.

The blue hedgehog was down on one knee, inquisitive emerald irises intently studying the messages scratched in the stone wall by the other prisoners, brow furrowed in concentration. He ran the clawed, bare fingers of one hand across the surface of the words, the other holding up a borrowed torch for light. An ear flicked in her direction was the only sign he'd heard her enter.

Finally, Sonic stood, with a bit of effort she noted, and turned to give her his full attention. He gave her a warm half-smile that reached his eyes, as though he was welcoming home a close friend, not a persecutor. "Hey," he greeted, still smiling.

She gave him a simple nod, which was a lot coming from her, causing his smile to widen. For a moment, neither said a word, one waiting for the fury he was sure would come, the other too emotionally drained to care. The silence lengthened as his eyes bored into her, studying her curiously. Did he know? Then Tyla spoke, feeling strangely calm.

"Why did you leave your cell if you are not going to attempt escaping?"

An aggravating smirk appeared at this question. "Just to annoy you really…," he replied. At her furious look, Sonic laughed, holding up his hands as a sign of surrender. "Hey, _relax_. I was just kidding." Putting his hands down, he shrugged nonchalantly. "Honestly, I was just exploring. After all, if I'm gonna be here for the rest of my life, I might as well get to know the place a bit better." He chuckled again.

For the rest of his life. She winced, then cursed herself for doing so. He seemed to notice, though, for his eyes softened. "What's wrong?" he asked, sounding genuinely concerned. He cared. The first and only prisoner to ever care. Why? Of all people, why did it have to be him? He broke her. She knew it now. That day, weeks ago, he'd shattered her. She could no longer function normally. That little girl within her kept taking over, whispering in her ear. '_**Look at the sky…isn't it beautiful?**_'

'_**That man is someone's little boy. He's hurting.**_'

'_**Why are you so angry at them? Did they do something wrong?**_' She hated that little girl. She loved that little girl. She refused to listen. Yet she had no choice. She'd started to question her orders. Her routine. Her very way of life.

Now she could feel pain. It was all his fault. And yet…

She was tired of being numb.

For a long time, she didn't answer him, her eyes drinking him in. His fur: caked with blood and littered with scars. His posture: confident with a quite, unspoken pride. His attitude: rebellious, carefree, reckless, never completely surrendering. His eyes: twin pools of empathy, of wisdom, of experience. She hated those eyes. They made her feel safe. Weak. Vulnerable. Secure.

"I'm to execute you at dawn." Her voice sounded out of place in the scilence. Sonic froze. Slowly, she watched his perfect smile falter. For the first time since she'd met him, it disappeared. He quietly closed his eyes. It was the only sign of grief. For minutes, he just stood there, his thoughts a mystery, and she began to wonder if he'd finally quit. Then, his eyes reopened and his smile was back. It was a small, pained smile that didn't reach his eyes, but it was there. He hadn't given up. He wouldn't. Never.

Tyla swallowed, her heart breaking as the little girl started to cry. '_**Not him. Anyone but him. He doesn't deserve this. None of them do.**_' "Why…?" Her voice wavered slightly, so she hushed the girl and tried again. "Why do you insist on smiling?"

His smile widened slightly as he answered, eyes filling with memories. "A very close friend once told me that life is not about waiting out the storms. It's about learning to dance in the rain." He laughed, quietly. "I was never much of a dancer, but…I tried. Besides, my smile usually has a good effect on people."

'_**See? He's someone's little boy too. He's worried about them. Can't you see? It's in his eyes. Everything is.**_'__Oh, not him. _Please_, _**any**_one but Sonic. She had to get out of here. '_**You have to help him.**_' She couldn't take it any more. '_**Please!**_' Tyla whirled around. She hadn't taken more that two steps before he spoke again.

"You hate it here." She froze. It wasn't a question. '_**He knows you.**_' And even if it was, her silence confirmed it. '_**He cares.**_' "Tyla, look at me." '_**Listen.**_' Slowly, she turned to face him, her face set in stone. '_**Listen.**_' For a minute, his smile was gone, his gaze thoughtful. Then, he narrowed his eyes, his face the picture of gravity. "You don't deserve this." '_**He forgives you.**_'__'_Neither do you._' "Come with me." '_…What?_'

Almost immediately, her eyes blazed and she growled fiercely, willing him to disappear. '_**He wants to help! If you'd just-**_' She whirled around and stormed out of the room. After a moment, the slam of the door echoed through the cellar. Sonic closed his eyes and sighed. Well, at least he tried. He'd hoped to take her with him, but… '_I guess I have to escape alone._' He'd come back for her, though. When he was stronger, he would save everyone. He always did.

After doing a couple of stretches, he left the cell, torch in hand, and started up the stairs, pausing at the door. He had just crouched, ready to saw through it with his razor sharp quills, when it suddenly swung open. Sonic's eyes widened.

Tyla gazed at him with an unreadable expression, an unconscious wolf at her feet. She had some type of backpack slung over one shoulder and was carrying a sword that looked bigger than she was. Their eyes met. '_**See? He still cares.**_' For the first time since he'd met her, Tyla smiled. It was gone as quick as it came, though, as she grabbed a hold of his bloodied wrist and bolted down the hallway, dragging Sonic behind her.

Too late. '_**I saw that.**_' Tyla swore.

Me: Aaaaaaand done! …dang it. These chapters keep getting shorter. *sigh* No, this isn't the end, though it may be awhile till I update. Again. Not THAT long though…I just want to update some of the stories that get more poll votes first…(hint, HINT) Poll is still up and running!

Also, _**I UPDATE FOR REVIEWS**_! And I've heard "Great job!", "I love this story!", and "This is amazing!" a _million times_! I would REALLY appreciate something more original, like "This story was good/bad because…" I'm trying to improve here people! I need opinions! Oh, and if you need mine in one of your stories, just say so, and I'll leave the best review I can! Thanks! ^_^


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